During the recently held joint press conference addressing the recent violence in the territory of the Virgin Islands. Commissioner of Police Michael Matthews stated that in order to combat crime and the drug trade plaguing the BVI, we have to change our mindset.
Matthews said, “We happen to live in a region where the drug trade has happened to be allowed to thrive in different areas. What I’m saying is that the mindset needs to change, in particular with our young people not just young men it can be young women as well. They see this as an attractive, quick fix to get rich and I suppose the obvious thing to ask us all, is that when you look around and you notice that someone has three or four homes, and two and three fast boats, and couple of nice cars. They haven’t got a job; you have to ask yourself a question. Where is their income coming from? That’s why modernizing legislation is going to be so important going forward to the BVI. We need to get to a stage where we can hold people to account, where they can’t explain their assets. Especially when we are living in today’s age where we know categorically the illicit drug trade, mainly cocaine, is connected with murders, deaths and violence on our streets.
Premier Fahie also encouraged residents to hold each other accountable saying, ““If someone you love, a friend, a family member, someone in your household, is going on the wrong path, talk to them. Urge them to stop and to think. Remind them that there are children and loved ones who love them and who need them. We cannot live selfishly, that is not the trait of us as Virgin Islanders. We must continue to support the police and the other law enforcement agencies by doing our civic duty.”
